Study: Fluoride exposure in womb associated with risk for neurobehavioral problems
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Key takeaways:
- More fluoride meant increased odds of neurobehavioral issues by age .
- Increased fluoride in pregnancy was associated with autism spectrum disorder.
Higher fluoride levels in pregnancy were linked to increased odds of offspring exhibiting neurobehavioral issues by age , according to research published in JAMA Network Open.
“I became interested in researching potential neurodevelopmental impacts of fluoride exposure while in graduate school after reading a study published by Mullenix 1995,” Ashley J. Malin, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Florida College of Medicine, told Healio. “The study found that rats exposed to sodium fluoride in early development exhibited ADHD-like symptoms. Realizing that a human study had never been published on this topic, I felt compelled to conduct the first one.”
Malin first study in Environmental Health in 2015, but she said that studies on and neurodevelopment been conducted in North America.
“The first of these was published in the ELEMENT cohort, based in Mexico City, in 2017, and since then numerous other studies have been conducted with study populations based in Canada and Mexico,” Malin said. “These studies have examined prenatal fluoride exposure in relation to neurodevelopmental outcomes including IQ, ADHD symptoms, executive function and cognition, and have also observed adverse associations.”
For the current study, Malin and colleagues specific adjusted maternal urinary fluoride (MUFsg) neurobehavior at age using the Preschool Child Behavior Checklist.
he researchers found that each 0.68 increase in fluoride levels was associated with nearly double the odds of children scoring in the clinical or borderline clinical range for neurobehavioral problems at age .
“The study findings are not entirely surprising given that they are consistent with findings from other studies on prenatal fluoride exposure and neurodevelopment conducted in Canadian and Mexican populations with similar fluoride exposure levels.
A 1-IQR increase in MUFsg was also associated with an 11.29% increase in scores on the DSM-5oriented Anxiety Problems scale of the CBCL (B=0.11; 95% CI, 0.003-0.21; P=.045) and an 18.53% increase in scores on the DSM-5oriented Autism Spectrum Problems scale of the CBCL (B=0.17; 95% CI, 0.04-0.30; P=.009).
“It was interesting to see an association of higher prenatal fluoride exposure with symptoms of autism spectrum disorder,” Malin said. “There have been a lack of studies on potential impacts of fluoride exposure on autism spectrum disorder symptoms and/or diagnosis, although plausible mechanisms for this association have been previously described.”
Malin added that it would be important for additional research to address potential impacts of fluoride exposure on autism spectrum disorder symptoms and/or diagnoses.
“I think that it would be important to conduct a nationwide U.S. study to better understand potential impacts of early life fluoride exposure on neurobehavioral outcomes for the entire U.S. population,” Malin said.
References:
Malin AJ, et al. Environ Health. 2024;doi:10.1186/s12940-015-0003-1.
Malin AJ, et al. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.11987.
Mullenix PJ, et al. Neurotoxicol Teratol. 1995;doi:10.1016/0892-0362(94)00070-t.
Study explores association between fluoride exposure in pregnancy and neurobehavioral issues in young children. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1044973. Published May 20, 2024. Accessed June 3, 2024.
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